World Hospice and Palliative Care Day 2016

"Living and dying in pain: It doesn’t have to happen" is the theme of World Hospice and Palliative Care Day being celebrated on Saturday, October 8, 2016.

World Hospice and Palliative Care Day is a unified day of action to celebrate and support hospice and palliative care around the world. This year, World Hospice and Palliative Care Day theme tackles the critical issue of access to essential medicines for pain management and palliative care worldwide, and resonates with the advocacy work being done in the lead up to – and beyond – the United Nations General Assembly Special Session on the World Drug Problem.

According to the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), 75% of the world’s population (5.5 billion people) does not have adequate access to controlled medications for pain relief.

As a result, millions of people suffer from pain which is avoidable and could be managed with proper access to the correct medications. Various barriers prevent people in need from accessing these essential medications. This year’s World Hospice and Palliative Care Day campaign will focus on three major barriers for access to pain relief:

1. overly restrictive national regulations
2. poor education of healthcare providers in relation to opioid medications; and
3. economic barriers to availability of these medications.

Between the launch of the theme and World Hospice and Palliative Care Day itself, the WHPCA will provide case studies, advocacy resources, and examples of good practice to help you address these issues in your country and region.

You can find out more and access the Key Messages for this year on the World Hospice and Palliative Care Day webpage. Follow World Hospice and Palliative Care Day on the WHPCA Facebook page, as well as on Twitter. Join the conversation using the Twitter hashtag #WHPCDay16.